Nigerian businesses saw subdued growth in Sept –Report

Nigerian businesses experienced muted growth last month as the weight of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy aided the slow pace of expansion, data from the Stanbic IBTC Bank Nigeria Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for September showed on Tuesday.

“The Nigerian private sector remained in growth territory in September, although there were some signs of moderation as rates of expansion in output and new orders softened.

“Companies continued to expand purchasing activity and employment in line with higher new orders. Suppliers’ delivery times improved further amid a lack of road congestion.

“Meanwhile, increased workforce numbers and sufficient capacity to fulfil new orders led to a series – record decline in the level of incomplete work,” the report said.

Business sentiment reached its all-time low in September since the survey launched in January 2014, with businesses saying they find it hard to make future plans.

Higher costs of raw materials and disadvantageous exchange rates spurred input price inflation.

Among the upsides was rise in new orders and output, which the Stanbic IBTC report noted was buoyed by demand recovery after the lifting of coronavirus-induced curbs.

The PMI, which gauges the health of the economy through trends in the manufacturing and service industries, stood at 52.5 in September.

A reading above 50 points to expansion while that below 50 signals a contraction. The reading for August was 54.6.

Meanwhile, the official PMI report is due later this month from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s statistics department.